Prenatal Vitamins: For When You Can’t Get Your Five a Day
If you’re like most pregnant women, you’re probably feeling like you can’t get your five a day.
In addition to the nausea, the fatigue, and the constant trips to the bathroom, you now have to eat for two!
It’s no wonder that many pregnant women end up resorting to take-out and prenatal vitamins as their primary source of nutrition.
But what are prenatal vitamins, and do they really provide all the nutrients that you and your developing baby need?
Here’s a closer look at some of the benefits of taking prenatal vitamins during pregnancy.
Prenatal Vitamins 101
First things first: let’s talk about what exactly prenatal vitamins are.
Prenatal vitamins are basically just multivitamins that have been specially formulated to meet the increased nutritional needs of pregnant women.
They typically contain higher levels of folic acid, iron, and calcium than regular multivitamins, which is important because these are nutrients that pregnant women are often deficient in.
Most obstetricians recommend that pregnant women take a daily prenatal vitamin supplement throughout their pregnancy, even if they’re eating a well-balanced diet.
That’s because it can be difficult to get all the nutrients you need from food alone, especially if you’re struggling with morning sickness or other digestive issues common in pregnancy.
Prenatal vitamins can help fill in any gaps in your diet and ensure that both you and your baby are getting everything you need.
Benefits of Taking Prenatal Vitamins
There are several benefits to taking prenatal vitamins during pregnancy.
First and foremost, they help prevent birth defects by ensuring that you’re getting enough folic acid.
Folic acid is a water-soluble vitamin that’s found in leafy green vegetables, legumes, nuts, and fortified foods like cereal and bread.
It’s important for pregnant women to get enough folic acid because it helps prevent neural tube defects like spina bifida.
Neural tube defects occur when the neural tube doesn’t close properly during development, and they can be serious or even fatal.
Prenatal vitamins also help prevent anaemia (low iron levels) during pregnancy.
Anaemia is common in pregnancy because your blood volume increases by about 50% during this time, which means your body needs more iron to make more haemoglobin (the part of red blood cells that carry oxygen around your body).
Prenatal vitamins typically contain more iron than regular multivitamins, which can help keep anaemia at bay.
Finally, taking prenatal vitamins can also help prevent gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia (high blood pressure during pregnancy).
Gestational diabetes occurs when your body can’t produce enough insulin to keep up with the demands of pregnancy, and it can lead to complications like pre-eclampsia (which can be dangerous for both mom and baby).
While there’s no guarantee that taking prenatal vitamins will prevent gestational diabetes or pre-eclampsia completely, they may lower your risk somewhat.
Consequently, There are many good reasons for pregnant women to take prenatal vitamins every day.
Not only do they help fill in any nutrient gaps in your diet, but they also provide some protection against birth defects, anaemia, and other complications of pregnancy.
So pop a pill (or two) and rest assured that you’re doing something good for yourself and your baby!
Conclusion
There are many benefits to taking prenatal vitamins during pregnancy—from preventing birth defects to reducing the risk of gestational diabetes—so if you’re not already taking them, now is the time to start!
Prenatal vitamins are an easy way to help ensure that both you and your developing baby are getting all the nutrients you need.
If you’re a pregnant or breastfeeding mom, you know how important it is to get the right nutrients.
But with everything else you have to think about, it can be tough to keep track of what you need.
That’s why we’ve put together a list of the 5 best vitamins for moms.
Just click the button below to check it out. And don’t worry, we’ll only recommend products that are safe for both you and your baby.
So go ahead and take a few minutes for yourself. Your body will thank you.